Longevity

Today the show On "The Doctors" was about longevity.What is the secret of long life? And every centenarian said,that the key was Happiness.Yeah ! it sounds so cliche' but there is truth to it alright.When you have done what you could and when you could,you come to a point when you dont want to dare yourself to doing something exhilarating.Especially when you're past 80 yrs old.

Some pointers were,being surrounded by friends and family.A happy family and happy friends.A good social network at home or outside leads to good life experiences.Eating a handful of nuts 4 times a  week,be it a kid or adult is good for the body and also a key to longevity.A couple giving time to one another without interfernce every now and then is a key to happy marriage and so good life.HAving family dinners or meals together as family is good as it leads to people eating less,conversing more and therefore being a part of each and everyone's life.Women tend to live 10 - 15 yrs more than men.Because of the hormone estrogen and XX chromosomes.

Eating chocolate that contains 70% cocoa or more is good for the heart.Lindt makes good ones.Dark chocolates arent that great.They cant compete with milk chocolates but then I have learnt to prefer healthy substitutes with the dawn of aging.

Natural exercise was also considered a major point.Natural exercise meaning going for long walks in parks,in open areas or hiking.Something that involves you and nature and not a 60 kg metal machine in between.

Thats all I have now coz my aunty called me in between and I landed chatting up with her and the show finished.

Bye !

Ramadan Day 4

LAtely,after opening fast,I have been eating a lot.Every time I put a morsel into my mouth ,I keep wondering if this will add some pounds on me.I did lose a little weight a while ago and I plan on continuing to do so.Its given me this mild will power to keep my weight on check.Gaining even half a kg would throw all efforts into the loo.

Today,my husband will open his fast at work and Im left on my own to open at home.I plan on something simple.Some instant noodles with eggs and ham,some water melon,and tea with muffins.My husband is a foodie and when he is at home,he tends to fry tons of things and then I find it too hard to resist.

I didnt even know today was a saturday and I have been waiting for the kids to drop in like forever.This is the second time I have lost count of the days.Since my husband works on weekends as well ,I have totally lost touch with what date and day it is.

3 more hours to go and Im feeling a bit hungry.ANd am having a headache.I wish I could just fall asleep but since Im the napping a lot kind,I have no choice but to be awake and feel my body asking for food.

I probably may cook dal and rice in the evening.Lets see,right now I just cant think of food.And since food is whats on my mind,I cant think of anything else.

First day Of Ramadan

I thought I would feel the pangs of hunger but for some reason,I didnt feel anything during the day.Maybe because I had a muscle spasm on half my buttock,I couldnt concentrate on anything but my half side.I gave tutions and thats when I started getting headaches.Come on,am used to drinking 6-8 mugs of black tea a day and not able to start off your day with one can be pretty ugly.I tend to get very snappy,irritated and If I lose my temper ,I just want to bite someone's head off.

Also,we had invited a couple of friends over and my husband cooked everything.I couldnt even run to the loo if I started dripping pee.He made pakodas of various vegetables and egg.He cooked kheema stuffed in karela with white rice.He made massar dal,made lassi.I felt so bad that I couldnt help him out but he loves to cook and cater to friends.They do the same for us ,so why not!

Now the kids,all they saw was I towering over their books and teaching them.And Uncle slogging in the kitchen.Within half an hour of their departure,both their parents called up to ask,what was being cooked and that he was slogging in the kitchen.No ,the kids didnt say that aunty couldnt move but she managed to teach anyhow but they felt sad for uncle,who was slaving away ,while aunty just sat in front of us.Its really strange,when men do something even a bit feminine,the world pities them coz they arent suppose to do so.We poor "aurate",never get that credit.Why? Its in a "by birth resume" that kitchen,babies,cleaning  is all part and parcel of womanhood anyway.

At 6:30pm,food was served,guests were seated,table laid and at the sound of Azaan,we ate a date with lassi and started having dinner.The food was fabulous but somehow after fasting for 16 hours,I couldnt eat a lot.Dinner was done,I got started with the major task of washing up,cleaning the whole kitchen down.My Kitchen is pretty small,so I cant just let the dishes be.They have to be washed and tucked into the cabinets,before anything more can be done.Since my husband did the cooking,there was a lot to clean up.But it took me only 30 mins,so no big deal. After that ,I served Jelly with cream and bananas.The one who enjoyed my dessert was 1 yr old Mohammad.The moment I flashed him my bowl,he put himself in reverse gear,climbed down the bed,came upto me and sat on my lap.He knows Aunty will keep it coming ,if Im in her lap.He was so happy with the jelly and bananas,he literally danced around me holding on to my shoulder.

Again I washed the dishes,made tea for my guests.Then they left.After that I changed cushion covers coz Mohammad fed himself and everything around him food dripping oil.I swept the carpet,wiped the furniture,put away all the vessels,took a shower and sat down.Somehow the butt pain had almost subsided.

Then my husband came in after his prayers,I made tea twice,he showered and went out.Then he comes back at midnight,I serve him dinner and I have tea again and he goes to sleep while I say awake,coz before the morning prayer ends,one has to eat and drink and basically stuff ,to avoid getting hungry later on in the day.We drink water only.

Now its 5:09 pm,and I have a bad headache.My tummy is growling and Im feeling very hungry.I cant sleep coz I never can sleep on a empty stomach.People usually sleep away to glory and wake an hour before opening fast and whip something up.But I finish my cooking in the afternoon itself coz I have tutions and then Im preparing snacks at the last minute.So thats why,Im blogging now.I cant seem to concentrate at all.I have a solid half an hour before I start doing anything in the kitchen coz we have yesterday's leftovers.

Oh ,I may watch "The A Team " today later on in the evening.My husband bought me the movie yesterday.He handed it over and said,it will make you happy.I love it when he does small things like this or rather i have learnt to appreciate these things and see them as signs of love and attention.The weekend is on,lets see what the night outings are going to be like.

Right now Im freezing cold.When you dont eat anything at all for long periods of time,your body I guess slows down everything.Im the kind of person who sweats while eating meat or drinking hot tea or having spicy food.Its like all my pores just unlock and ganga jamuna begin to flow,my cheeks go all pink on me.Its embarassing,coz many of my lady friends go like," Itni garmi lag rahi hai,tum tho pasina pasina ho gayi ho." What am I supposed to do,spray rexona over my face to avoid pespiration.

Husband just woke up,asked the time and went to sleep.Almost an hour more to go.Bye.

Onset Of ramadan

Tomorrow marks the beginning of the one month of Ramadan.As per Islam,Ramadan is a time when a muslim fasts from dawn to dusk and Then opens fast with the name of Allah.The purpose of fast being to experience the life and turmoil of a poor needy person who cannot afford food or basic luxury of life.The lesson being to understand humility and appreciate what God has given you and still be grateful.Now another benefit of this fast is,you get a chance to cleanse your body from within.I mean with regular fasting,you are sort of detoxifying yourself and giving your body a chance to  normalise those cholesterol,tryglyceride levels.

Also,you get a chance to learn self control and discipline your body.How? During the duration of the fast,one cannot smoke or engage in sex or listen to music.You have to fast in every sense of the world and its not just the body ,its the mind as well.Many people quit smoking or any other such filthy habit which they otherwise they would find hard to give up.As on other days,one has no restrictions whatsoever.

This is a month of repentence,seeking forgiveness,losing some of your bad habits and seeking spirituality.People try and encourage their families to pray regularly,to read the Holy Quran and practice simplicity as much as they can.Even charity is done at its best during this month.You know,some Asians bring thier relatives on visit visa suring this month,so that they can beg outside mosques and being a month of generosity,muslims give alms and money without thinking twice.If someone begs,you just wont feel like turning away.You will definitely feel bad.I have seen  many fake beggars here but during Ramadan I dont argue with them.I give away food,milk and sometimes money if I have the change.

In summary, the month of Ramadhan has been made so that mankind can take benefit of the merits and blessings contained within to change themselves for the better and by doing so create a bond with Allah that will continue throughout the eleven remaining months.



It is a month within which Allah has instructed us to place more emphasis on actions regarding our Deen (religion) as opposed to our daily routine and emphasis on worldly matters.

I love this month.Initially I find it difficult to fast the whole day.You cannot even drink a drop of water when you are fasting.So we are fasting from 4am to 6:30pm in the evening.The fast can be broken if one isnt well or travelling or pregnant or just gave birth.
This month,I will diet properly,I wont over indulge and plus having friends and family over for Iftari (opening of fast) is wonderful.I dont wear makeup,dress up and I try to remain as simple as I can.You cannot be angry,talk back,say bad words or fight during Ramadan.You cannot disrespect anyone.I get up by noon,cook the main course and keep aside.Snacks I make half an hour before Iftari.I also tutor during the time I fast.Its pretty dificult at times coz I feel completely drained and both of us being diabetic,its seems pretty challenging to both me and my husband.

Tomorrow is the first day of ramadan and I have invited guests over for Iftari.So I will be very busy tomorrow.I still have some green grocery shopping to do but the rest is okay.

I feel bad for my hsuabnd becasue with his fasting he has to work in the heat with temperatures soaring at 45 to 50'c plus,I pity him but Allah will bless him and keep him and many people like him safe healthwise.Many people tell me,cant he just keep work aside as it is allowed for muslims to do less work if they cant work with fasting.But as he works for the coastguard,its like putting the water security of the country on hold.I mean,boats and ships have to be fixed coz they work 24/7,365 days.

So what i do is,as soon as he comes back from work,he takes his shower and I put him to bed.He sleeps and wakes up 10 minutes prior to opening fast.Meanwhile,I do the cooking,tutoring and other basic stuff.Once the fast has been opened,which we do with a full course dinner,we can hardly budge from our spot.We sit there for half and hour and then slowly I satrt washing up and drink tons of tea.Im a tea addict and since to have my first cup I have to wait for evening,I get such massive headaches that i could bite anyone's head off.But since I cannot emote this way,I shut up and let my blood pressure rise within.

I will update my blog during ramadan.Right now I have a catch on one buttock and Im not able to move much.Dont ask how I got it? Must be the sleeping position.